Joyce Fegan: Politicians exploit our low threshold for big problems

By Joyce Fegan

It suits those in power when you focus on Cheryl Cole and Liam Payne’s break-up over the fact that there are 3,826 children living in a sweatbox of a hotel room somewhere off the M50.

If Leo Varadkar wants the media to focus more on the workings of government than the gossip in the corridors of Leinster House, and if Leo Varadkar wants the media to focus more on the truth than the story, then buckle your seat belt and pull up your colourful socks, because here goes.

It was a Monday, at 8am. No one knew how long his body had been there. The average temperature was 5C. The authorities struggled to identify him.

Politicians were preparing to return to Leinster House after the weekend. Journalists were sitting down at desks to kick off the weekly news cycle. Word eventually got out. One of the first headlines read: “Homeless man found dead near Dáil Éireann.”

On December 1, 2014, this country was plunged into shock. A man, whose name we did not yet know, had died in a doorway just a stone’s throw from Leinster House: 44 steps, to be exact. Five granite steps led the way to his body and a blue-grey Georgian door sheltered him in his dying moments. Journalists were sent to Kilkenny to locate his mother.

His name was Jonathan Corrie. He was a father. He was 43. He had been addicted to drugs and was sleeping rough. National outcry ensued and an emergency summit was called. Lords mayor and even archbishops got involved.

That same month, there were 2,859 adults, 407 families, and 880 children homeless in Ireland.

Today, there are 6,020 adults, 1,724 families, and 3,826 children homeless in Ireland.

On this, yet another beautiful, hot, clear-skied sunny day, you’ve already got your 99 problems. You don’t want another one. I know that. Governments know that.

Governments know that you’re busy with your household budgeting, that you’re under too much pressure at work and are looking for a new job, that your car service, tax, and insurance are all due on the same day and that your elderly mother has fallen for the third time this year.

Because of all your busy-ness, governments also know that you will focus on one, maybe two news stories a week, saying to a neighbour or a friend: “Did you hear about so-and-so?” or “Isn’t terrible what happened to that poor girl in Enniskerry?”

It suits those in power that you’re busy and preoccupied with the challenges of daily life. You cause them less trouble that way. It also suits those in power when you focus on Cheryl Cole and Liam Payne’s break-up over, say, the fact that there are 3,826 children living in a sweatbox of a hotel room somewhere off the M50.

Governments also benefit from you being overwhelmed by big, huge, massive social problems, like there being 9,846 homeless people in Ireland. If you do have 99 problems, that sure ain’t one you have the will or the ability to take on.

Just about to go on stage to officially launch Ireland’s bid for a seat on the UN Security Council. #Ireland #UN #IrelandUNSC #GlobalIreland #NewYork pic.twitter.com/PLhokG91nV

— Leo Varadkar (@LeoVaradkar) July 2, 2018

Another thing those in power benefit from is you being desensitised, like how we went from being shocked and appalled in April, 2015, when the Dáil heard that there were more than 800 children living in hotels and B&Bs, to being almost numb when we hear that there are nearly 4,000 Irish children homeless today. When people feel powerless, when they’re not in a position to help, they just switch off.

When we switch off, we take no action. When we switch off, we also stop holding power to account.

There’s another trick in power’s bag. In the political world, they call it spin. Spin takes several forms. Power will commission independent reports, with multi-hyphenated names. Power will hold summits. Power will publish action plans, never to be actioned.

Power will say things like “statistically” the numbers have “stabilised”. Basically, it’s the really boring stuff that you’ll scroll past on your phone on the Luas after a long day, because your brain only has room for stories about Cheryl Cole and Liam Payne.

Those in power know this stuff bores you. And, in fairness, you kind of have to hand it to them, because nothing switches you off like boredom does.

It’s convenient for power to have you bored, overwhelmed, and desensitised.

What’s not convenient for power is fact, truth, and when we focus not on the colour of the socks it wears but on the policies it creates.

So, here are some facts: In June, 2015, there were 3,258 adults, 620 families, and 1,318 children homeless in Ireland. In June, 2016, there were 4,152 adults, 1,078 families, and 2,206 children homeless in Ireland.

In June, 2017, there were 5,046 adults, 1,365 families, and 2,895 children homeless in Ireland. Today, there are 6,020 adults, 1,724 families, and 3,826 children homeless in Ireland. The only stabilisation is a very steady, upward trend in the number of people becoming homeless in Ireland.

I’m in New York with @simoncoveney to launch Ireland’s campaign for a seat on the UN Security Council. It’s a great opportunity to put Ireland at the heart of UN decision making & an important part of #GlobalIreland 2025 our plan to double the impact of our international presence pic.twitter.com/OUScmyfQBV

— Leo Varadkar (@LeoVaradkar) July 1, 2018

And is there no money; is that the problem? No, you couldn’t really say that. Last year, €148m was spent on homeless services in Ireland. Of that, €124m was spent in Dublin and, of that, €97m went towards emergency accommodation, as opposed to preventative measures.

The year before? In Dublin alone, €96m was spent on homeless services. €72m of that went on emergency accommodation or plugging the hole instead of fixing the cause of the flood.

The solution?

“The real solution to the housing crisis is to build public and affordable housing. The only way to do that is to build 10,000 social housing builds direct with local authorities.

"This needs to be done yearly, for the next five to eight years, to cope with supply and demand. Unless councils are given the funding and remit to build social housing, this crisis will remain persistent,” says Anthony Flynn, who set up a charity called Inner City Helping Homeless (ICHH) a few years back.

So, hang on. If there is money in the kitty and a solution at hand, what’s the hold up? You’d have to ask your local TD or Taoiseach about that.